A Vulpix Tail
by RiverJJ
Summary: This is the story of Ash and his partner, Vulpix. As they journey throughout the Kanto region and beyond. They will be taking the conference and the competitions by storm. All review are welcome. Please enjoy.
1. Chapter 1

"Beep, Beep, Beep, BEEP", my alarm continued to blaze into my eardrums. I covered my face in my pillow before I began to blindly swipe for my alarm clock. I eventually was able to turn the blasted thing off by hitting it of my bedside table. I slowly drifted back of to sleep…. …. … "Ash your going to be late to receive your first Pokémon", yelled my mother from downstairs. At my mother's announcement I leaped out of bed at speeds a mankey would be envious off. I rushed out of the grabbing socks, pants and a t-shirt I had discarded when I went to bed last night. By the time I got down the stairs I had my belt in my mouth, a sock in either hand and my shirt on inside out. Despite this I bolted out the door yelling, "Bye Mum, I'll be back after I get my Pokémon from Professor Oak." After that I bolted down the road to the famous professor's house, singing at the top of my lungs, "I'm gonna be the very best like no one ever was…".

It took me about 5 minutes to reach the professors house. By the time I arrived I was panting my lungs out. Sometimes I really wish I had more endurance, I must remember to work on that during my journey. I knocked three times on the Professors laboratory door. I did not have to wait long before I received a response from the Professors aid, Tracey. Tracey was around my age. He was about 4 foot 6, remarkably tall for a 10-year-old. Despite his great height it wasn't the most obvious thing him about him. No, the most attention capturing thing about Tracey was his purple hair that stuck out at all different directions. Tracey interrupted my inner musing by gesturing me to come inside and greeting me, "Good morning Ash". "Good morning", I replied in between gasps. Something that Tracey seemed to pick up on as he said with a knowing smile, "Just woke up did you Ash?" I grunted in response before gesturing in way that said, take me to the professor. Tracey seemed to take the hint, that didn't stop him from smiling behind his hand though.

"Ah Ashy boy, I was beginning to think you weren't coming", said a whiny voice that could only belong to one person; Gary Oak. I growled under my breath, "Gary" I practically spat out of my mouth. Gary Oak was the Professors Grandson. The fame of being the only Grandchild of the great Professor Oak had certainly gone to Gary's head, at least that was my personal perspective. A more mature individual would probably have understood Gary's pride. After all, professor Oak was one of the most famous researchers in the world. Not to mention he was once upon a time the Kanto champion.

This time it was the professor entering the room that interrupted my inner musings, "ah I'm glad to see all five of you are here." It seemed that my hate for Gary had given me tunnel vision as I had failed to notice the three other 10-year-olds in the room. They were Ashley, Green and Rose, all children local to Pallet Town. "Thank you for all arriving on time", despite the professors statement the look he sent he gave me made it clear that I was very close to being late. Unfortunately, I was not the only one to pick up on the professors look as Gary nastily laughed at my misfortune. I blushed in equal parts frustration and embarrassment. Thankfully the professor quickly moved on, pressing a button on the remote he was holding. In response the table seemed to fold apart as 5 Pokeballs rose out from within the table. Each Pokeball had an insignia for a different type of Pokémon on them: fire, water, grass, electricity and another fire. "Normally I only sponsor three children, however this year due to a variety of different circumstances I will be sponsoring all 5 of you. The three Pokémon I normally give to children I sponsor are; Charmander, Bulbasaur and Squirtle. The breeding centres unfortunately couldn't give me another two of the starters. Thus, I had to make other arrangements for the other two Pokémon. I will let the other two starters be a surprise. Now before I give you your Pokémon I want to give each of you some things to start you off on your journey." After he finished speaking he picked up two sacks from a nearby desk. Out the first sack he brought out some Pokeballs, giving us 5 each. From the second and heavier looking bag, he brought out something far more precious, something that Oak himself had created after years of research; A Pokedex. "Now I know all of you know how to use these, so I'll just give you this warning. Take care of your Pokedex because you will not get another one they are very expensive. Now please in an orderly fashion grab one of the Pokeballs containing the partner you will have for the rest of your life." Gary strode forward without talking to the rest of us about how we would distinguish who would go first. It seemed that Gary's sense of entitlement ran deep within him, but I suppose someone had to go first. Gary grabbed the Pokeball with the water insignia upon it. I almost rolled my eyes at his choice, he had been bragging about grabbing Squirtle since they were five years old and told which starters they would receive from the Professor when they turned ten. Gary released his Squirtle over in the corner and began talking to it.

"Well ladies first", it seemed that Green agreed with my statement as he stepped back giving the girls a clear indication they could choose first. Rose turned to Ashley and held her hand out in a fist and said in a questioning manner, "Rock, Paper, Scissors". They played three rounds, Rose was the winner. She strode forward and went towards the fire Pokeballs. I felt my heart beginning to flutter as she ran her hands over both Pokeballs trying to decide which one she would choose. Everyone in Pallet town knew that both Rose and I wanted a Charmander as our starters. I couldn't bear to watch, so I turned my face away. The tell-tale flash of light of a Pokémon being released forced me to turn around to see a little orange lizard looking up questioningly at Rose as she grinned widely at the Charmander. I felt my heart drop into the pit of my stomach. Oh well, that's okay there's another fire type it may not be another Charmander but that okay. I felt myself begin to almost hyperventilate at my inner thoughts so I stopped thinking. Rose turned around from where she was talking to Charmander and I gave her one of my charming smiles and a big thumbs up to let her know there was no hard feelings. The smile and nod she gave me let me know she got my message. I had been so distracted by Rose with her Charmander that I had failed to notice that Ashley had chosen the electric Pokeball, which apparently contained a Pikachu. Which was currently sparking electricity in quite dangerous amounts as it looked at its new trainer. Ashley seemed to not notice the dangerous vibe the Pikachu was giving off as she picked it up off the ground and hugged it tightly. It was equal parts worry and laughter that filled me as Ashley did a strange dance as she was electrocuted by the Pikachu. Oak quickly grabbed its Pokeball and returned the aggressive electric mouse Pokémon, "I'm sorry about that Ashley. I just caught that Pikachu the other day when I found it eating the electricity wires of the Laboratory. I thought it was almost divine providence as I didn't have Pokémon for you all. If your happy to wait a couple of weeks, I could get you a less aggressive Pokémon maybe?" "No that's okay Professor, I don't really want to wait and its just to cute not to love. Given time I'm sure Pikachu will fall madly in love with me", Ashley said with a lot of confidence, especially considering her body was still giving of smoke from her electrocution. "Alight, but I insist that you go home to your mother to relax for a few hours before heading off", the Professor said in a concerned voice.

After Ashley was escorted home by Rose I turned to Green and said, "It's okay you can choose first". Green nodded and thanked me before going and grabbing the Bulbasaur's Pokeball. With deep breaths I stepped forward and released the last Pokeball. After a brief flash of light, I met my starter….

There in front of me was a little tiny orange fox. It was the most adorable thing I had ever seen. It had 3 tails and the brightest green eyes I had ever seen. I had no idea what it was. "Hey little guy my names Ash and I want to be a Pokémon Master, will you go with me on my journey? I'm afraid I don't know what Pokémon you are but you're the cutest Pokémon I have ever seen." Vulpix clearly appreciated the compliment as she blushed and nipped my outstretched finger lovingly "I'm just going to scan you with my Pokedex to learn about you, okay?" I don't think Vulpix understood what I said but she yipped happily and turned in a circle before sitting down on her haunches again. I laughed before pointing my Pokedex at her, the Pokedex beeped at me before saying in a mechanical voice, "Vulpix the fox Pokémon. At the time of birth, it has just one tail. The tail splits from its tip as it grows older. This Vulpix is female and has 3 tails so it is a very young Vulpix. This Vulpix is the runt of its litter as it is smaller in size than the average Vulpix, standing at 1 foot 6 instead of the average 2 foot in height most Vulpix have. This Vulpix also has the ability Flash Fire. It knows the moves: Tackle, Tail Whip and Ember." With a final beep the Pokedex turned itself off. It seemed that Gary had finally stopped his conversation with his Squirtle as he said, "Well I can't say I'm surprised. The runt of Pallet town got the runt of the litter." Gary seemed to find his joke very funny. Vulpix seemed to have other ideas as she bent down into an attack position and growled aggressively before biting Gary swiftly in the leg. Gary quickly stopped laughing and cried in outrage at being bitten. Outrage and blustering all over the place, Gary entered my personal space and challenged me to a battle. Clearly Vulpix hadn't hurt him to much as he stomped his way out of the room….

**Hey Guys! I'm a relatively new author so I would appreciate all the ****helpful**** criticism your willing to give me. I'm hoping to publish a couple thousand words every couple of days. Also starting a poll for Pokemon Ash will get. **

**At this stage:**

**Vulpix**

**...**

**...**

**...**

**...**

**etc.**

Kind Regards,

RiverJJ


	2. Ash vs Gary

Ash smiled at Gary tauntingly from across the paddock outside Oak's laboratory. He felt far less confident than the smirk on his face might imply. After all he had a young fire type, against a water type that would grow to be one of the best water types native to Kanto. Despite this with all the bravado he could muster he said, "Ready to lose Gary?"

"Ready as I'll ever be. Ashy Boy", Gary replied smugly before expanding his Pokeball and throwing it onto the paddock between the two of them. The ball exploded into a burst of light before returning to Gary's hand. Leaving a small blue turtle in its wake. The turtle was around 3 feet tall in stature and had a tough shell that was yellow on its underbelly and reddish brown on the back with a white ring around it. Despite its relatively small stature it was still much larger in height then his small Vulpix.

This turtle appeared to be as arrogant as its owner as it said, "Squirt, Squirt, Squirtle". Before placing some black sunglasses on its face and smirking in an almost exact manner as his owner.

Ash quickly followed suit, releasing Vulpix out onto the battlefield. Vulpix shouted out its name as it appeared from its Pokeball, "Vulpix". Ash felt quite proud as he looked upon his new Pokémon. Despite the size and type disadvantage it had. Vulpix wasn't shirking away in fear at all, if anything its growls made it very clear that she would like nothing more than to attack the still smirking turtle.

"Let's get this battle started Ashy.", Gary said before pointing at Ash's Vulpix and commanding Squirtle to attack, "Go Squirtle use Bubble on that disgusting Vulpix."

Vulpix growled at Gary referring to her as "disgusting". Ash whispered quietly in response, "Go get 'em Vulpix. Dodge and use tail whip."

Vulpix ran towards the paddock fence successfully dodging Squirtle's Bubble attack. Vulpix continued to run towards the fence and did a back flip off one of the fence posts to avoid the remainder of the bubbles. Ash was stunned at the speed of the tiny Vulpix as she dodged and darted around Squirtle's seemingly tireless attacks as Gary kept order Squirtle to use its Bubble attack. "Your doing amazing Vulpix just keep dodging, Squirtle is getting tired out", Ash yelled out to his Vulpix who was beginning to also look tired from her constant dodging.

"This isn't working Squirtle, your to far back you can't hit the blasted rat from this difference. Use withdraw to heighten your defence and then move in closer and use tackle." Gary yelled out through cupped hands to his tiring Pokémon. Squirtle quickly followed Gary's demands as he stopped shooting out Bubbles and all his limbs disappeared into his shell.

"Vulpix, this is your chance move in close while he's using withdraw and blow as much fire as you can into Squirtle's shell." Ash cried out desperately to his Vulpix, he knew this was an all or nothing venture. If Vulpix managed to get there in time the battle would be ours. The Squirtle line has incredible defences. However, their inner tissue is incredibly soft and if Vulpix manages to catch the Squirtle off guard the shell would act like an oven. Leaving nothing but turtle stew in remains.  
It seemed Gary knew what would happen if Vulpix got there too as, his eyes widened as he yelled out, "Squirtle use Bubble from inside your shell."

Just as Vulpix had arrived and leaped up to shoot fire into his shell a mass off water came out knocking Vulpix off her feet. Squirtle continually shot water out of his shell, which made him spin in place shooting water all over the place like a sprinkler. It seemed that his was too much for Vulpix as she fell down on the grass and didn't get back up again.

"Vulpix no", Ash yelled out in worry as he ran to pick up his Vulpix. Ash was just beginning to get doused by Squirtle himself as he approached Vulpix.

Gary recalled Squirtle, who was still spinning, before yelling out, "Smell ya' later Ashy boy. Hopefully next time you'll be able to give me a decent fight". Before he walked away laughing at what he considered to be a funny joke.

Ash didn't even hear Gary's final comments from his position on the ground. As he cradled his semi-conscious Vulpix in his arms. "I'm sorry Vulpix. If only I hadn't told you to get closer, we could have worn out his inner water supply. I promise that next time we meet, he won't beat us again", Ash was almost in righteous tears at this point as he began to take Vulpix to his home to give him a potion.

His mum was in the living room watching a documentary of Ponyta when he arrived, "Mum can you get me one of Mr. Mimes emergency potions please. Vulpix is hurt." After saying this he moved into the loungeroom past his mother as she went to go get a potion. He had just gotten the more lucid Vulpix comfortable when his mum returned with a potion.

"What happened Ash?", his mother asked in a worried tone that only parents have.

"I got into a fight with Gary. We lost. It was my fault. I gave Vulpix poor instructions. But next time, its going to end differently." Ash's eyes burned with determination as he said this. He quickly looked down when he noticed that Vulpix was licking him. When he looked into the tiny feline's eyes, he saw the same look he was sure he was sporting. Determination to win, no matter what it takes.

Flash! Until that moment Delia had gone unnoticed as she had gone and gotten her camera to get a photo of them both. "Mum, you know I hate it when you take photos of me", Ash complained in a whiny voice. Which was quite a change form the mature tone he had been using earlier.

"I know dear. But this is a very special moment. You only get your first Pokémon once you know?" Delia said as she smiled at her son and his knew adorable Pokémon.

Vulpix rolled its eyes before using tail whip on Ash's face. "Ow! Vulpix that hurts", Ash whined. Then he noticed the look Vulpix was shooting at the now forgotten Potion. "Oh right", Ash said in a rather embarrassed manner.

After fixing Vulpix up with the Potion and having a wonderful lunch. The now stuffed Ash and Vulpix were leaving his childhood home. Thankfully Delia had packed his bag with all the gear they would need to start their journey while they were at the Professors lab. Ash was just about to close the door before he heard, "Ash Ketchum don't you forget to change your underwear", his mother yelled out from inside the house. In response Ash slammed the door and ran for the front gate, praying that Vulpix hadn't heard him. He almost daren't look down at the tiny fox. It was only after they were outside the gate that he looked down for the tiny fox. Only Vulpix was still at the foot of his front door on her back laughing at him. "Muuuuuum!" Ash yelled in exasperation before running and picking up the still snorting Vulpix, who had only just begun to compose herself.

It wasn't long before Ash and Vulpix were strolling down Route 21 away from Pallet town. Either most people didn't know, or they didn't care, but you could take a ferry from the docks at Pallet town to Cinnabar Island. But for whatever reason, literally all the trainers went through rout 1 to Viridian city and did a circle around the Kanto region before going to Cinnabar Island last. Ash supposed it could be because it cost $2,000 Poke dollars, which was a lot for a new trainer, but Ash had been saving up for this ferry since he decided on getting a Charmander. Even though Ash had not received the Charmander he had still gotten a fire type. One that he was actually very pleased about, Ash thought as he looked down at his little fox who was chasing floating flowers carried by the wind. Ash smiled, yes, he was very pleased with his starter. Thankfully because Vulpix was a fire type he could continue with his plan to go to Cinnabar Island. Ash thought that it would be best to train under Blaine for a while with his fire starter. It wasn't well known, because it was an old practice, but Gym Leaders can take on apprentices who have Pokémon with their typing and help them raise them. Blaine was clearly the obvious gym leader for Ash given he had a fire type.

As Ash held his Vulpix in his arms while he waited for the small boat to leave the docks. He couldn't help but hope that Blaine would take him as his apprentice. After all, just because the Gym Leaders could take on trainers as their apprentices, it didn't mean they had too. Blaine was also known for being the most eccentric out of all the gym leaders. For the last 5 years, only 7 people that had reached the Indigo League had gotten the Volcano badge. This was because no one knew where it was anymore. League officials were known to be exasperated by Blaine and if it was anyone else, he probably would have lost his gym leadership rights. To this day Ash still pondered about how come the old wizened man could still be a gym leader. He would be sure to ask him when he met him.

Hey Guys!

Next update is out. What do you guys think about him heading to Cinnabar Island?

Thanks to all the people who reviewed the story. I really appreciate it. I hope you guys have noticed that I have taken your spacing comment into account and I hope it makes it easier for you to read. Keep the feedback coming please.

Also thanks to rockingchampif for his idea's about Elekid I think I will take them on board. Also thanks to HPfan7-8 for the Pokemon suggestion of Munchlax. I have put a pole up guys about which Pokemon he would get. If the Pokemon you would like is not on the list I put their just review or PM me and I'll get back to you about it. If your suggestion is as awesome as HPfan7-8's was then I'll definately include that Pokemon

Anyway Guys, thanks for reading.


	3. Arrival

The sky blazed with thunder as the child run through the forest crying. Crack! Bang! Boom! The children fell and cowered, as he heard the thunder boom overhead. He felt like he had been running forever and despite his fear he did not have the energy to continue running any further. Through the tears in his eyes the child could see a figure across the clearing. As the next bolt of lightning illuminated the clearing the child could see his chaser. It was a hound of some kind. The dog like Pokémon was large and baring his teeth at the child. As Ash started to scream out in despair; the dog lunged at him with his jaws outstretched…  
Ash awoke covered in sweat to his darling Vulpix licking his face with a look of concern. "It okay Vulpix", Ash whispered, "It was just a bad dream. Go back to sleep". With a look of disbelief in her eyes Vulpix jumped onto his chest and began to lick him. The previously macabre atmosphere was quickly replaced by the sound of Ash giggling as Vulpix continually licked him. "Vulpix stop it, stop it", Ash cried out as his giggles turned into great belly laughter. Ash gently pulled Vulpix into a hug and whispered his thanks to his little fox. Once they had calmed down Vulpix pawed at Ash with her head cocked to the side. Staring at him intently with large questioning eyes. Ash while not the smartest boy in the world could tell what Vulpix was asking him. "It's nothing Vulpix. I'll be fine, it happened a long time ago. I promise I will tell you about it one day", Ash said in a serious tone. Despite only having been together for a week the Pokémon and trainer had become very close. From the expression on the fox's face it was clear she was not happy with Ash's answer. Nevertheless, she jumped onto his pillow and curled herself into a ball. Ash took that as acquiesce to go back to sleep. It was not long until the ten-year-old was back in dreamland. Vulpix watched Ash for a time with both a sense of pride, but also filled with worry at wondering why every night they had been together he would awaken in cold sweats. But like the boy, the tiny fox was also very young. So, it was not long before she too would enter the void.

The next morning, they stood at the bow of the boat looking out towards their destination. "That it Vulpix, that's where were going to find our fire type master". Vulpix yipped in response to her trainer's words. Cinnabar island was fast approaching. It was a large island with a volcano stationed in the centre of it. There was a ring of very sharp and dangerous rocks encircling the island. From this distance you could only just see the small town on the beach of the island surrounding the volcano. All in all, it was the perfect home for a fire type master. "Arrggh", growled the captain over the ship's loudspeaker, "Well be setting ashore in roughly 30 minutes mi harties". Ash began laughing at their captain who sounded very much like a salty sea dog. Vulpix looked confused at Ash's amusement but joined in the cacophony by yipping and running around in circles.

It was not long before the boat docked at the tiny jetty that met the shore near the iconic red building that could only be a poke centre. As they disembarked from the ship Ash paused by the grizzly captain and asked him where they could find Blaise. With a toothy smile, comprised of many gold teeth, the captain said with a booming laugh, "You need to head into the volcano laddie". Which was quickly followed by a mimicked voice of, "into the volcano laddie, into the volcano…Screech". This mimicry came from the bird on the captain's shoulder that had largely gone unnoticed by Ash thus far. Vulpix growled at the bird Pokémon from her position on Ash's shoulder. This only gave the captain cause of laughter before he started heading back to his ship. Just as Ash began to turn around the captain stopped and said, "You better know what you're doing laddie, Blaine may be an old nutter, but he single handily drove back the Unovan invaders when they tried to invade Kanto back in '06. It is why nobody challenges the old bastard. At least not without going through most of the rest of the league first. As far as I can tell you've only got that there Vulpix and as cute as she may be she's got nothing on Blaine's beasts. So, let me give you some advice. If your going to beat Blaine in a battle you need to get yourself a water type and you are not gonna be able to do it with that their fire type of yours. I like your spunk kid, you're not following everybody else your age". At this the old man turned his head slightly so he could look Ash in the eye, "I'm leaving port in a week and if you can train your Vulpix to a point where it doesn't fair from one of my Pokémon's attacks I'll give you a gift that'll help you against the old geezer." With that the captain of the ship turned away from Ash and walked away. Ash called out a thank you after the man before turning to Vulpix, "I think it's pretty funny he's calling Blaise old given he's not exactly a young man. But, he was certainly very nice to offer to give us a gift. Even if were not really here to fight against Blaise it can't hurt to try and achieve what the man asked of us. I wonder what Pokemon he has apart from that annoying bird." At the annoying bird comment Vulpix let out a growl. Ash laughed and rubbed Vulpix's cute curls on its head before walking down the jetty towards the town.

Hey guys, I know I haven't written in a long time. But I have been crazy busy with Uni. I've also got an essay due in a couple days, so I won't be doing a lot more for a while. But I just wanted to post this. Mind you I am thinking of changing some things in the story. It's been ages since I started it and since then I've read "Sacrifice and Subjugation" and it made me want to change the sort of flavour of the story to a more darker and realistic one. Also sorry if you got spamed about chapter update for chapter 3. Was having a problem with website and uploading this chapter.

Also wanted to thank "Kmbrun" for their suggestions about how to improve my grammer and spacing. Really appreciate it. I know I havent done it yet, but I plan to once I get to 10,000 words :)


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